I wore this Burberry shirt and Alexander McQueen suit for the Concert for Diana memorial, 10 years after her death. It was a big event and I wanted to make it as brilliant as possible, right down to my white shoes. People might think you should go for a big splash of colour to stand out when lots of acts are performing on one stage, but white is the best and simplest option.
I would not often advocate wearing all white; if you’re going to a party or something then just forget it. It is also very unforgiving. I couldn’t eat anything once I had the suit on, and I had to walk around with tissue paper tucked into my collar to make sure I didn’t get makeup on it. I was performing a song called Switched On, as well as Leave Right Now, but [the concert organisers] tried to pull all the dancers at the last minute. I had the eight girls backstage, all in their outfits, so I was like, “No way – I’m not turning round and saying we’re not using them any more.” I said I just wouldn’t perform. That, twinned with the tissue paper stuffed in my collar, was quite a look.
My hair, which I’d had darkened slightly, had a little quiff to it. My stylist had been bidding on eBay until the last minute for the ring I wore. The guy who she bought it from was in Germany and he messaged her the following week to ask if I had been wearing it for the concert. He was really pleased to see that it had found a good home.
I would wear something quite different if I were to do this concert now – probably some sort of skirt or very wide culottes. Nowadays I love wearing Japanese designers. I also like Craig Green, JW Anderson and anything that slightly pushes the boundaries of gender norms. After that performance, I found a white Victorian crumpled skirt with lots of layers, which I love, and now I wear it all the time. I think men can look amazing in skirts – everyone says men look great in kilts but they are the same thing! Why is a man in a skirt “in drag” while a man in a kilt is considered very masculine? It’s only down to the fact that people have a problem with the label.
Will Young’s album Lexicon is released on 14 June 2019.
